The -Ahem- 2025 Christmas Holiday Gift Guide
/Hey everyone! We know we haven’t been blogging or podcasting… like… at all. But that doesn’t mean we haven’t been gaming. Nor does it mean we’ve ceased to have opinions and recommendations about games. And since this year we’re feeling a little extra Christmas-y (because why not!?), we thought we’d come up for air, and share some recommendations that will make your beloved gamer’s Christmas morning just that much more… gamey…er.
Anyhoo, enough of that, let’s get to the list!
Stocking Stuffers
Flip 7
Recommended by: Both
This pleasant little deck of cards packs a great punch for a small package. One of the Spiel nominees this year, it’s as fun as it is casual. Each turn players are making a simple decision: flip over one more card and risk busting, or stay with the score they have. This can be taught to anyone, and that small decision tree means games go fast, Fast, FAST. Plus it’s dirt cheap. A great addition to anyone’s collection, or any holiday family gathering!
Find it on Amazon HERE!
Booty Dice
Recommended by Firestone
After I (Firestone) played this simple game once on Board Game Arena, I immediately went out and bought a copy. I’ve played it with our youth group and with family. It’s a dice roller that uses the King of Tokyo roll-dice-up-to-three-times mechanism, and it doesn’t do much new, but it’s still a fun filler or family game.
Loot
Recommended by Jeremiah
2 Words: Reiner Knizia. This game is a simple pirate battle to obtain the most… Loot. Players play 1 card on their turn, either a Merchant Ship (worth loot), or a Pirate Ship, to try and capture another player’s Merchant Ship. It’s simple, but not. Lots of strategy and competitive game play in this small package!
Pina Coladice
Recommended by Firestone
The same thing happened for me (Firestone) as Booty DIce. I played it on BGA and realized this would be a great youth group/family game, and it’s been a hit with both groups. It’s a bit like Yahtzee but with a spatial element as you’re claiming tiles to move toward a win.
Seaside
Recommended by Jeremiah
This is a portable, tile set-collection game with a charming theme and great aesthetics. Just draw a tile out of the bag to start your turn, and you’re off and running! We played a ton of this when we picked up a copy at Origins in 2024, and it still finds its way to the table as a fun filler.
Party Games
Feed The Kraken!
Recommended by Jeremiah
Imagine, if you will, that The Resistance/Avalon had a child with Secret Hitler, and that baby grew up to be a pirate… Sounds weird, right? Feed The Kraken is a wonderful spin on some of our favorite social deduction games. Adding a unique spin with a third faction (the cultists), each faction has unique wrinkles and win conditions. My game group LOVES this game!
Just One
Recommended by Both
This one has been around for a while, so if it’s not in your collection, get on it! There are few things more approachable and accessible to the family gathering than a cooperative party game, and THIS IS IT! It’s a simple clue-giving game as each player takes turns guessing a word hidden only to them. We’ve gotten a TON of play out of this one for groups of all ages!
So Clover
Recommended by Firestone
This cooperative word game is our go-to filler. You place four sets of two random words together, and you have to come up with a 1-word clue that tells your teammates which words you had. It’s fast and clever, and I’ll never turn this one down.
Ready, Set, Bet!
Recommended by Both
Who doesn’t like gambling!? Well… at least pretend gambling. Ready, Set, Bet sends players to the race track and lets them bet on the races in real time as you start the race on your mobile or tablet device. Place bets early and get the best odds, place them too late and you’ll miss out! Lots of fun for larger groups and gatherings and the casual gamer!
Casual Gamers
Next Station London/Tokyo/Paris
Recommended by Both
The Next Station games are great little flip-and-write games that use 4 different colored pencils as players plan out their own underground transit system that crosses beneath the town of London, or Tokyo, or Paris… Each game has its own unique subset of rules, based on the same overarching ruleset for the series.
Easy to learn, and just the right amount of thinky fun for a quick game.
The Sherlock Files
Recommended by Jeremiah
Some one-off mysteries for the casual sleuths to solve. Each volume contains 3 mysteries. Mechanically the game is simple: Play a card with info on the case you’re investigating so everyone at the table (who you are working with cooperatively) can gain the info, and reference images and notes shared on the cards. There’s a point system involved in how many cards you play/discard, but the real fun is solving the mysteries!! These are a great filler-ish length game for groups of any size!
Heat: Pedal to the Metal
Recommended by Both
This card-driven car-racing game has been a hit every time I’ve (Firestone) brought it out. The basic game is fun, but it gets really FUN when you add in the specialization cards, which add bigger powers and make each car unique. Super fun game.
Find it on Amazon HERE!
Cartographers
Recommended by Firestone
I have a ridiculous number of roll-and-write/flip-and-write games, but I find myself returning to this one over and over. You’re drawing polyominoes onto your map, trying to satisfy various scoring cards (which are different each game). And every so often monsters attack you, which gives your opponents a chance to draw a shape onto YOUR map, screwing your plans up. It’s clever and quick—two of my favorite game features!
Ticket to Ride Legacy
Recommended by Jeremiah
A LOT of people tell me they LOVE Ticket To Ride, and I agree, it’s a great game. But after so many plays, and so many expansions have we seen all there is to offer? I say, NO! Ticket To Ride Legacy takes the TTR game we all love and adds lots of wrinkles, a growing map, changing rules, and special abilities and goals. Each play is different, and the story line, like the map, continues to grow with each play. It’s a bit more pricey than the standard TTR, but it is well worth the investment, especially for a family that loves to play TTR regularly!
Serious Gamers
A Message From the Stars
Recommended by Jeremiah
I LOVE me some deduction games, and I also am a fan of co-ops. Wouldn’t it be cool if they could smash the two together? Oh wait, they did A Message From the Stars places players in the roles of either an Alien, or a Scientist giving each other clues to suss out a code of letters and words. Be aware, the teach for this game is REALLY clunky, but once you get a grasp on it, the game REALLY shines. Even those in our game group who don’t particularly care for deduction games really like this one!
SETI
Recommended by Firestone
You’re leading a scientific institution, trying to discover signs of intelligent life out in space. You’ll launch probes, land on planets, send out signals to the depths of space, and research cool technologies to help you do it all better. And in each game, you’ll encounter two alien species that completely change the game. It’s the best new game I’ve played in the last year, and I can’t wait for the upcoming expansion, which adds NEW ALIENS to discover!
Search For UAPs (Or Lost Species, OR Planet X)
Recommended by Both
Did I (Jeremiah) mention I LOVE deduction games? The “Search for” series really scratches that itch! There are plenty of juicy logic rules and app-driven discoveries in these titles. Jeremiah’s favorites are Planet X and UAPs, while Firestone likes Lost Species, so you really can’t go wrong with these titles. Very thinky, and very crunchy!
Find them on Amazon HERE!
Speakeasy
Recommended by Firestone
This is the latest behemoth from the King of Crunchy games: Vital Lacerda. During Prohibition, you’re trying to raise up a speakeasy empire while fighting off crime lords who want to take over your territory, and police who want to put an end to your spirited distributions. It’s a worker-placement game where you’ll be making hooch, transporting it, and selling it on the sly. One of my favorite things about this is that, while you’re trying to create a more lucrative enterprise than your opponents, there’s no direct player conflict.
Mother of Frankenstein
Recommended by Jeremiah
The ABSOLUTELY most puzzly of puzzle-solving games! This is equal parts experience, story, and solving some VERY advanced puzzles. I won’t tell you anything about the story in order to avoid spoilers, but if you get all three volumes you’re in for 6-9 hours of brain melting puzzles, plot twists, and a VERY satisfying conclusion.
Well, there you have it! Our list of games that we humbly suggest putting on your radar for an excellent Christmas season!
Thanks so much for reading, and to all the wonderful readers, listeners, and folks in the gaming world who helped us along the way, we wish you and yours a very merry Christmas, a happy holiday, and a very blessed new year!
—Jeremiah and Firestone
